Day 06 – The Logline and Logline Quiz

Picture this…

You’re in L.A. running an errand.  You’re downtown in one of the big buildings, possibly to deliver your darling beloved script to a Reader who is a friend of a friend of an aunt’s second cousin twice removed.  You step into the elevator to ride up to the top.  The door’s about to close when you hear, “Hold the elevator!”  So you do.

:60 sec Elevator Pitch...GO!

Low and behold, who should step into your world all of a sudden but J.J. Abrams.  Or Tom Hanks or Jerry Bruckheimer or Brian Grazer or The Ralph Winter.  (Those are all big-time Hollywood Producers whose names you should at least recognize, btdubs…and if it’s The Ralph Winter, well he actually, physically glows like Xanadu so you have to shield your eyes a bit).

Anyway, you hold the elevator, they step inside very grateful.  As they wrap up their phone call, you hear them complaining about the “same old tired, worn out stories” from the same “tired, worn out studio hacks” and how they wish they could find a darling little script to Produce.   After they hang up, they notice the script you’re clutching in your sweaty palms.  Then the second miracle happens.

“What’s your script about?” they ask, turning toward you, generally interested.

Based on the speed of the elevator and frequency of the stops.  You realize you’ve got less than 60 seconds.  60 seconds to communicate your darling beloved to a perfect stranger.  60 seconds to win them over.

This is called the elevator pitch.  And every writer should have one for their script.  If someone asks what your story is about, you should be able to push the play button on your iBrain and spew 60 seconds of verbally interesting wonderfulness that gives a very clear picture of your story and makes the person want to know more.

If you’ve finished your script before you have a decent elevator pitch, then you’re writing backwards.  Because every script begins with a pitch that we call a Logline.  A Logline is 2 or 3 sentences long or less and answers 3 vital pieces of information.

1. Who is your main character?

2. What is the problem they face?

3.  What are the dramatic stakes?

Interestingly enough, these three things you HAVE to know before you start writing your script.  More on that later, but these are the 3 story anchors. For example, try this on for size:

A boy bonds with an extraterrestrial who’s been stranded on earth; the boy defies the adults to help the alien contact his mothership so he can go home.

That’s the logline for E.T. The Extra Terrestrial.  It’s also kinda the logline for Super 8, but I digress.  Let’s look again at our questions:

1. Who is the main character?  A boy (Elliot)

2. What is the problem they face? Found an alien that can’t get home, hunted by Adults

3.  What are the dramatic stakes? Get the Alien home before the Adults close in

Loglines are a screenwriter’s necessity.  They’re a great exercise and they keep you narratively nimble.  It’s a good idea to jot 2 or 3 of them down every day.  As a class exercise, I would always have my students come up with 20 or 30 loglines.

It’s an interesting exercise because most of us can rattle off 8 to 10 ideas that we’ve been thinking of for years.  But you get past 10 and you start having to dig deeper.  Past 20 and you’re straining brain muscles you haven’t strained in YEARS.

Back to the students, what I also found was that the first 5 or 10 loglines were just lame rehashes of whatever top 10 films were in the box office at the time.  They were all about Vampires, Gangsters, Superheros, Serial Killers, Zombies…every single writing cliche you could find.  But the further down the list I got, the more personal and interesting their stories became.

Professionals talk about cranking out 100 loglines just to get to maybe one decent one.  As you look over your loglines, you may find that a couple of them have similar themes and on their own, they may only represent half a good idea, but by combining two of your loglines, you come up with a really good story idea.

Now that we’ve gotten through our first week of Screenwriting in August, I think it’s time for your first quiz.  It’s a logline quiz.  Identify the following films by their loglines.  No cheating, keep your eyes on your own paper, and no Googling!  (Answers to follow tomorrow!)

POPULAR LOG LINES QUIZ

__________In 1984, the USSR’s best submarine captain in their newest sub violates orders and heads for the USA. Is he trying to defect, or to start a war?

__________Bob Munro and his dysfunctional family rent an RV for a road trip to the Colorado Rockies, where they ultimately have to contend with a bizarre community of campers

__________A group of Earth children help a stranded alien botanist return home.

__________Two men who keep an eye on aliens in New York City must try to save the world after the aliens threaten to blow it up.

__________A best man stays on as a houseguest with the newlyweds, much to the couple’s annoyance.

__________The cross-country adventures of two good-hearted but incredibly stupid friends

__________An ambitious ex-con and his ten accomplices plan to rob three Las Vegas casinos simultaneously.

__________A workaholic architect finds a universal remote that allows him to fast-forward and rewind to different parts of his life. Complications arise when the remote starts to overrule his choices.

__________A dysfunctional family determined to get their young daughter into the finals of a beauty pageant take a cross-country trip in their VW bus.

__________When a regular guy dumps a superhero because of her neediness, she uses her powers to make his life a living hell,

__________Berated all his life by those around him, a Friar follows his dream and dons a mask to moonlight as a “Luchador” (wrestler)

__________On New Year’s Eve, a luxury ocean liner capsizes after being swamped by a rogue wave. The survivors are left to fight for survival as they attempt to escape the sinking ship.

Answers are HERE.

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Top 17 Biola Media Conf 09 Tweets

Did you feel the earth move on Saturday?  Me neither.  Prolly cause I’m wayyyyyy out on the East Coast.  But from the sounds of things, the Biola Media Conference had a massive impact on attendees and speakers alike.  As usual at Wired4Film, we’ve plumbed the news and gossip wires and pulled feedback from blogs and tweets and twubs and Facebook…I know, I know…I had you at Twub.

Anyway, let’s hop into the mind of Phil Cooke and peek through his eyes for a moment as he observes on his blog (PhilCooke.com):

Short of receiving the final numbers, it appears this weekend’s Biola Media Conference was the best yet. Great speakers, fantastic attendance (even in this financial crisis), fabulous sponsors, and a great program all added up to a really eventful day. Co-director’s Kathleen Cooke and Peggy Rupple did a remarkable job organizing the event. We started out with an incredible performance from the “Groovaloos,” who won this year’s Superstars of Dance competition. Then I interviewed Mark Zoradi – President of the Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Group. After a 29 year career at Disney, rising to the top of the industry, Mark had a lot to say about his personal faith, his commitment to excellence, the Disney brand, and advice for others in the industry. Memorable quote: “Always over-deliver. If you consistently over-deliver in your work and expectations, people will want you on their team.” 

Then we had a talent panel led by Kim Dorr, that explored how important the talent factor is in putting projects together. Writer and actress Susan Issacs sent us to lunch with a sobering and challenging thought: “So many people are “called” to Hollywood, but what if God called you there for only 3 good years out of 30? What if you had to struggle 27 of the 30 years? Would you still go?” 

We broke up into numerous workshops on issues like legal, marketing, new media, alternative financing, ethics and ambition, and more. Memorable quote: When an attendee asked that as a Christian, is Ralph Winter (Producer of X-Men) films, concerned about the violence in his films? Ralph replied, “There’s no question that Wolverine has claws and uses them, but ultimately, I’m not as worried that God is pleased with my movies, as I am that God is pleased with me.” 

When pressed further about that last comment, Ralph Winter explains: “It is more about who we are becoming on the journey of life.  That is what journey of faith is about in following Christ.”

He also added, “The Biola Conference was great.  Our seminars were well attended, lots of comments on my page. Probably the largest conference ever for Biola.  And Joe E. was terrific – an inspiring message.”

Cooke filled in a few more details on the mysteriously inspirational Joe E.

In the afternoon, our keynote speaker was Joe Eszterhas, legendary Hollywood Animal (as his biography states), who has written films like Jade, Sliver, Flashdance, and Basic Instinct. He was paid $3 million for the script to Basic Instinct, and his movies have made more than a billion dollars at the box office. Joe smoked hard, drank hard, and lived hard. But in 2001, after a battle with throat cancer, he experienced a powerful encounter with God, and it transformed his life. His talk was frank, honest, rough, filled with grace, and brilliant. During my interview afterwards, he was very vulnerable and human. He shared from his heart on the change in his life, how it impacted his marriage and family, and how it has impacted his perception in the industry. He also gave us some great advice. Memorable quote: “If you’re a writer, protect your vision. Don’t be too quick to let others change your work. Fight for it. It all starts with you.”

Along the way, a handful of those on the inside were Twittering away to keep those of us on the outside, in the loop.  Here now are this year’s Top 17 Tweets in order of ceremony.  

TOP 17  #BMC09 TWEETS

1.  JeremiahDaws: On the CBS Radford Lot for the Biola Media Conference. In line to register. Lots of people here. #bmc09

2.  PhilCooke: #bmc09 pres. of Disney: “I repeat to myself “do nothing out of ambition or conceit” try and act genuinly an consider others.”

3.  DanaTwichell: Film is just as much a battleground of relevance as any other field. #bmc09

4.  TheGroveCenter: #bmc09 When you drink from the well, remember the well-digger.

5.  mattwarren: Howard Kazanjian, producer: we need more Christians in law, finance, exec positions, not just the arts. #bmc09

6.  JoshDaws: If you want to influence Culture, come here (L.A.). #bmc09

7.  mattwarren: Interesting mix of both indie & studio execs here today. It’s nice 2 hear both $5m & $100m perspectives #bmc09

8.  ryanwfitzgerald: Two ways Christians should conduct themselves in the industry: 1. Do excellent work. 2. Do it with integrity. #bmc09

9.  CharlieMatz: At #bmc09 great stuff so far. Our whole team on our next film is here. Good to see positive connections to move our larger project forward.

10. mattwarren: Guy in the room asked what he should do if he has $ to spend on a project 4 his friend to which 3 of us replied “call us” LOL #bmc09

11. dhepburn: Where your passion meets need is most likely where God is calling you. #bmc09

12. globalshortfilm: There are many ways to win. You may have 80 pitches before 1 gets picked. #bmc09

13. larissalamchiu: al kasha award winning compser ”study the word, study the masters” to improve your craft

14. JoshDaws: An agent assumed the cross Joe E. wore was just jewelry. His response: “Bullsh*t. It’s the symbol of Christ’s suffering and shame.” #bmc09

15. TheGroveCenter: Joe Eszterhas interview, screenwrtiter of Basic Instinct, Jagged Edge, 16 films…1billion in sales…from throat cancer to God…wow

16. katwoman327: Just because God calls you somewhere doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy. Look at the life of Jesus and Paul. #bmc09

17. hkenshin89: I was sad that #BMC09 had to end can not wait till next year!!! When does registration open BMC10!

Thanks all for the comments and feedback!  

For those who want to learn more about this crazy little thing called Twitter:  http://tinyurl.com/c5ep92

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Faith on Film

(SEP 01, 2007) Troy Anderson of Charisma Magazine writes about some recent trends inside and outside Hollywood for Faith-based, family friendly films.

Faith on Film

(EXCERPT) As a new generation picks up the mantle to help redeem Hollywood, [Ken] Wales says filmmakers should focus first on telling compelling, first-rate stories.

“I’m a real big fan of telling the great story,” says Wales, also a University of Southern California film professor. “The three most important parts of filmmaking are story, story and story, no matter how much technology improves.”

Passion Changes Everything

(JAN 25, 2004) Read full article Passion Changes Everything by Ralph Winter (Producer, X-Men) & Mark Joseph on www.NationalReview.com.

(EXCERPT) We are hearing anecdotal evidence from around the country that a massive audience is developing for The Passion of the Christ consisting of, in some cases, traditionalist Christians who have not been to a theater in decades.

Why? Because for the first time in history and in a manner and scale only hinted at by films like The Omega Code and Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie, a film has finally emerged that has five key ingredients: Star power, mainstream credibility, controversy, wide simultaneous release and deep resonance with traditionalist Christians.